Cause and .Means of Prevention of Railway ./tceiclents. 81 national ,importance, I have been successful in conveying to your minds in plain ~ ords that knowledge which it is important we all should know~ I have attained the main object of my appearance in this place. At thd conclusion of the paper, a vote of thanks to Mr. Fairbairn was proposed and seconded, which was very warmly accorded. ]~ailway .&cidents their Cause and .Means of Prevention; detailing partitictdarly lhe various

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... which are in use, and have been proposed; with the Regulations of some of the prb~eipal Lines. By Captain M. ttmsa.* The author first considered those points connected with the road, and the machinery employed upon it, fi'om which loss of life and injury to person and property most generally arose. With regard to the road or permanent way, from which fewer accidents occurred than from any other cause, its complete cfibctiveness was the basis of all safety in railway traveling; and for keeping it up, constant vigilance was necessary, especially when any great and sudden change of weather took place, as thet~ the weak points were sure to show themselves. It was a very rare occurrence for trains to run off" the line; and when they did so, it was more generally due to obstructions designedly placed on the line, than to any neglect of the superintendents or the plate-layers. It was little suspected how frequent, how ingenious, and how varied the attempts had become to inflict a fearful injury by these means; and though, providentially, but comparatively trifling damage had resulted from such causes~ yet it was lamentable to find that in addition to all ordinary risks, so diabolical a mode of wreaking a petty vengeance, or gratifying a mischievous disposition, had to be guarded against. Of late, the punishment for such o~hrLces had been made more severe; and it was to be hoped that this would have the eilbet of lessening their number. Owing to the rapid developement of the traffic, and particularly of the heavy goods traffic, ort the main arterial lines of the country, increased siding accommodation had become necessary; in the case of the London and North-~Vestem tlailway alone, upwards of fifty-three miles had been laid down within the last few years, although, by multiplying points and crossings, this had, pro taato, increased the liability to accident; for it might be received as alx axiom, that any thing which broke the continuity of a rail tended to develope danger. As, however, there were no means of' avoiding these frequent "turns out," judicious regulations combined with effective signals must be relied on, and now that facing points were reduced in number, the liability to danger had been diminished. The use of self-acting switches was attended with evils of no trifling magnitude, and many accidents had occurred from reliance on them; indeed, as a general rule, machinery to supersede personal inspection and manipulation was fraught with danger. With respect to the re]ling stock, it appeared from a return of one thousand eases of engine failures and defects within two years on the London and North-Western Railway, that burst and leaky tubes nearly * From the London Civil Engineer and Architect's Journal, May, 185~.